Chapter 4: Pokémon Square

Charizard stepped aside, holding the door open and motioning Absol inside. She was certain she looked ridiculous with Aromatisse's red and white blanket draped over her back; that wasn't going to help her make a good first impression. If she took it off, though, she was going to start shivering again, and that wouldn't help either. She found herself in a large, open room, which occupied most of the front half of the main level. At the far side of the room was another stone wall and two sets of stairs, one going up and the other down, and a large, curtained doorway. To her right and left, wooden partitions created several smaller rooms, some with doors, and some without.

The heavy door creaked closed behind them. The light was dim inside, but bright enough to see clearly, with the morning sun shining in through windows set in the upper third of the wall every meter or two. The ceiling was high, almost double Charizard's height, supported by the thick logs whose ends she had seen from outside. Everything about the structure seemed oversized, as if it had been designed to accommodate a family of Tyranitars. Perhaps it had.

"You've come all the way from Mount Freeze? Charizard asked, "it's been years since we've heard from Ninetales or Abs- um, your mother. You don't have news from Team Go-Getters, do you?"

Absol shook her head. "No. We haven't heard from them since Mother returned to Mount Freeze."

"What it it, then?"

Absol hesitated. Mother and Ninetales had always been a part of her life. They were always there, immortal, like the rocks and the wind, and it had not seemed at all strange to discuss her dreams with them. Charizard was a total stranger, like everyone else here, and suddenly she felt horribly embarrassed. What if she was wrong? What if it was all just her imagination? What if it was all true, but she sounded so awkward that no one believed her? Had Ninetales felt the same when he explained the meteor incident to the Go-Getters? No, he was hundreds of years old. Eight years was a lifetime to her, but it was a spring day to the old stargazer. He probably couldn't even remember the first omen he'd read.

"Are you alright?"asked Charizard.

"Yes," Absol said firmly, trying to sound more confident than she felt. How could she expect to be believed when she doubted herself? "We have a…mystery. A omen that none of us understand. Ninetales sent me to find you or Team Go-Getters for help."

It wasn't quite literally true, but it seemed easier to invoke Ninetales' authority than her own.

Charizard started toward the far end of the room, motioning for her to follow. "Let's get comfortable, and you can explain."

The curtained arch opened into a large room which occupied almost the entire back half of the building. Absol stopped in the doorway, staring in amazement. The walls were lined with shelves full of books and scrolls; thousands and thousands of them, in all shapes and sizes. A wonderful smell of leather and paper and ink filled the room. The ceiling was higher in here, occupying both the first and second floors. The second-floor windows were larger, and the room was brightly lit.

Charizard turned to her, smiling proudly. "Impressive, isn't it? We've spent over a hundred years collecting them."

A large masonry stove occupied the center of the room, surrounded by several cluttered tables and a semicircle of large cushions, toward which Charizard led her. The main chamber of the stove was cold, but a handful of sticks burned in the side chamber under a large kettle. Looking over her shoulder, Absol saw that the doorway through which they had come was flanked by several huge, colored maps.

"Please, make yourself comfortable. Tea?" Charizard offered as he poured himself a cup.

"Oh, yes. Thank you." Tea, apparently, was a popular tradition of town Pokémon, and it was something Absol definitely thought she could get used to.

Charizard set a bowl of tea on the table in front of her and took a seat on a cushion on the opposite side of the table, the keeping the burning tip of his tail carefully on the floor. Absol sniffed the bowl; the smell was relaxing, but it was still to warm to stick her tongue into.

"So, then. What's the trouble?"

"More than a week ago," Absol said, laying down on the cushion an allowing the her blanket to settle over everything except her head and forelegs, "Ninetales began to see an omen in the stars which he couldn't interpret. I had…a vision of something affecting the weather, and the sun. Not just on Mount Freeze, but everywhere."

Despite the vividness of her vision and the aching cold in her horn which had been a constant reminder, Absol thought it sounded silly as she said it. Charizard's expression, however, remained serious. He took a sip from his mug, waiting for her to continue.

"It was spring. The sun went down, and it started to snow again. It lasted for weeks. The night, and the snow. Maybe forever, I don't know." Absol shivered again, thinking about the vision she'd had. "Ninetales believes the First One or his children may be involved. I'd…rather explain to everyone at the same time, though. I don't want to tell the whole story more than once."

Charizard considered for a moment. "Alakazam and Tyranitar are out on a job. I expect them home this evening, if you can wait."

Absol nodded.

"Alakazam will want to bring in Xatu and Whiscash, as well, I think, and Delphox from the Explorers Federation. I'll send word. We can meet at Whiscash Pond after dinner. That's the lake at the bottom of the falls, on the other side of the valley." Charizard pointed, even though they couldn't see it from here in the library. "…Are you sure you're alright? You look uncomfortable."

"Just cold," Absol said, "I'll explain this evening."

"If you don't have a place to stay in town, you're welcome to stay in the manor for now," Charizard said with a sweeping gesture toward the building around them, "you see we have plenty of room."

"Thank you." Absol leaned forward to lap some tea from the bowl. It tasted as good as it smelled.

"You're welcome to explore the courtyard, main level, and basement, but the upstairs is private."

Charizard departed, leaving Absol alone in the library. She explored the ground floor and basement, deciding that her original assessment had been correct; several dozen Pokémon could indeed have lived comfortably in the manor. The main level contained a large kitchen and adjacent storeroom, and several unoccupied bedrooms. The basement was illuminated only by the light which spilled down the wide stairs, but for her Dark-type eyes it was enough to find her way.

The basement was divided by a stone wall through the center, like the main level, and stone pillars at regular intervals supported the structure above. It was dry, but smelled dusty and seldom-used. A large pile of firewood was stacked to one side of the stairs, and on the other side were several casks of cider and wine, and crates of Apples and dried berries.

She explored the courtyard as well. There wasn't much to it beyond what she'd seen on the way in; the garden extended all the way around the manor. Everything was neat and well-maintained, every bush and tree carefully pruned, with not a bit of wasted space. It was obvious that someone spent a considerable amount of time caring for the grounds; Absol wondered whether it was one of Team ACT, or a Pokémon from town. She wasn't particularly hungry, but she nibbled a few berries.

Eventually Absol returned to the library. She circled the room, too impressed by the sheer number of books to look for anything in particular. She recognized a few titles as stories that Mother or Ninetales had told, but most of them were strange to her. Had she come here under different circumstances, she thought, she could have spent years immersed in those books, learning new stories to take back with her. Right now, she was too anxious to read. She didn't want to leave Team ACT's compound; it would feel like a step in the wrong direction. She felt like she should be taking some sort of action, but she could think of nothing else to do but wait.

Absol returned to the maps by the door. There were four of them, each spanning almost the full height of the wall and just as wide, depicting what must have been four different continents in meticulous, brightly colored detail. Together, they must have represented a lifetime of labor by some master cartographer, Absol thought. She spent several minutes staring at each one before finding a familiar location; there, at the bottom of the first map to the right of the door, was Great Canyon. Xatu used to live there, she remembered Mother saying, before Team Go-Getters found him. There was Pokémon Square, and Treasure Town.

That must be Mount Freeze, then, in the top corner. Excited, Absol dragged a table over to the wall, followed by a pair of cushions, stacking them so that she could climb up for a closer view without risking touching the beautiful map. The level of detail was incredible. Leaning in close, she could make out individual ridges and valleys, everything in it's proper place. Yes! she thought. Articuno's nest would be right there, Mother's cave would be there by the rockslide, and Ninetale's cave was over in that valley. How were Mother and Ninetales doing? Had they learned anything more since she had been gone? Were they worried about her? Maybe Charizard and the others could get a message to them, at least letting them know that she'd made it to Pokémon Square.

Absol was so engrossed in the map that she didn't hear the other Pokémon come in. A quiet cough from below startled her, and the tower of furniture wavered under her paws. For an instant, she worried that it might slide out from under her, and she might damage the beautiful map; but, with years of experience on the rocky, icy trails of Mount Freeze, she regained her balance. A pair of Eevees stared up at her from the near the doorway; a male with a grey scarf, and a female with a pink scarf.

"Oh!" Absol said, "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you come in."

"That's alright," the pink-scarved Eevee bubbled excitedly, "Those maps are amazing, aren't they? I could stare at them for hours too."

"I don't think we've seen you around before," said the grey-scarved Eevee; he seemed not unfriendly, but much more reserved than his companion.

"I, uh, came to see Team ACT," Absol said simply, not wanting to be drawn into another explanation of her mission.

"Hi!" the pink-scarved Eevee said, as if seeing her for the first time, "You can call me Pink. It's confusing since there's two of us, see?"

"I'm Grey," the other introduced himself, "we're Team Easy."

"Um, a pleasure to meet you both," Absol said with a dip of her head.

"That's a pretty blanket," Pink said, jumping up on the table with Absol, "what's it for? Can you show me where you're from?"

Grey caught Absol's eye and shrugged helplessly, as if to say, sorry, I can't stop her.

"I live on Mount Freeze, up here," Absol said, pointing on the map.

"Oh, that's so neat!" Pink said. "I used to live by Tiny Meadow down here!"

Pink jumped down, scurrying under the table to point at a spot south of them on the map. Absol followed more carefully. Grey, she noticed, was already perched on the seat of a chair at one of the other tables, an open book in front of him. He wasn't reading, though, he was watching them.

Pink's enthusiasm was infectious. The two of them talked for ten minutes or so, jumping on and off the table to point out locations to each other. Pink seemed young, even younger than herself, but Absol was impressed by how well traveled she seemed to be. Pink pointed out towns she'd visited and mystery dungeons she claimed to have explored. Absol wasn't quite sure how much to believe, but she reciprocated with locations from stories she could think of. She retraced her own route from Mount Freeze as well, trying to pick out exactly where she'd stopped each night; it was surprisingly difficult, as she'd been too preoccupied at the time to take much note of her surroundings.

Eventually Pink tired of the game and went to join Grey at the table. Absol couldn't quite place their relationship; were they siblings? Mates? Just friends? Grey's age was difficult to judge. They didn't smell like they were related, but there was something a little bit off about Grey's scent, and she wasn't sure. Actually, there was something a bit off about the way Grey moved, as well.

Absol replaced the furniture she had moved and wondered what to do next. She prowled the perimeter of the room, looking at the titles of the books she could reach. She didn't know what she was looking for, and many of the titles didn't mean much to her. Was there some sort of organization to the library, or were they all just shelved wherever there had been room?

The Eevees were watching her again, Absol noticed.

"Can I help you find something?" Grey asked.

"I'm not really sure," Absol said, "There are so many books here, I don't even know what to look for."

"There are a lot, aren't there? It's not as overwhelming as it looks, though. Alakazam has a clever system; let me show you how it works."

Grey led her to one of the center bookshelves, on which was posted a long list of numbered subjects.

"Every shelf in the library is numbered," Grey said, "top to bottom, then left to right. Alakazam has everything grouped by subject, from general to specific. If you want to find a book about something, just find the subject here, and go to that shelf."

"Oh!" Absol said, "That's a good idea."

The highest level subjects were quite general; math, astrology, horticulture, history, geography, biography, biology, cooking, and so on, but some of them had dozens of subheadings. There were histories sorted by town, or by time period. There were entries devoted to books on Pokémon in general, or by type, or sometimes even by species.

She browsed the list until she came to the biographies. Many of the Legendaries had their own sections here. Now, that was more interesting; there must be thousands of new stories here. Mother and Ninetales would be so excited to hear them when she returned, as many as she could remember.

The Forces of Nature. Space, Time, and Chaos. Guardians of the Hidden Lakes. The Wisdom of Mew. A thick book near the end of the shelf caught her eye; Dragons of Myth and Legend. That sounded exciting. It was on one of the higher shelves, just barely within reach; Absol wanted to ask for help, but the only other Pokémon around were Team Easy, and the two Eevees would have even more difficulty reaching it. She stood up, supporting herself with one forepaw on the shelf, carefully hooking the claws of her other forepaw over the top edge of the spine to slide it forward.

None of the chairs in the room were anything like the right size and shape for her body, so Absol put one of the cushions back onto the table and lay down on top. She was halfway through the chapter on Latios and Latias when she heard the outer door open and close. There were heavy footsteps in the hallway, and then the stairs. Hopefully it was Tyranitar, she thought, returning with Alakazam from whatever job they'd been on. The book was interesting, but Absol was restless; she wanted to tell the story, complete her mission.

Eventually, Charizard's head appeared in the doorway.

"Absol - oh, Team Easy. I didn't know you were here - lets head up to Whiscash Pond, if you're ready. You guys are welcome to join us, if you like."

Charizard seemed to be friends with everyone. People greeted him, or waved as they passed. Absol noticed many of the Pokémon staring at her as they passed; they didn't seem hostile, just curious. While it made her uncomfortable, she couldn't fault them for their interest. Word had probably gotten around about her unintentionally dramatic entrance. Absols weren't very common, and she was probably the only Pokémon in town wearing anything other than a bag or tool belt.

The trail wound up the other side of he valley to end at a large, flat rock, jutting out into the pond like a pier. Xatu sat at the end of the rock, talking to the half-submerged Whiscash. Absol's first thought was that there was no way the enormous Whiscash could have gotten into or out of the pond under his own power; he would not have fit through the channel either above or below. He must have been there for decades or centuries, slowly growing to his current size.

Xatu turned to face her, beak opening in a smile. "Absol! I never expected to see you again, my dear. You know, you're just as beautiful as you were ten years ago."

Absol froze, confused and embarassed. Behind her, Charizard snorted and coughed, trying not to laugh.

"Is something wrong?" Xatu wondered, leaning forward to squint at her, "You know, my eyesight isn't what it used to be…"

"It, ahh…was my mother…that you met," Absol said

"Ah, well, this is awkward," Xatu said with a wink, seeming not at all perturbed, "let me try again."

The old bird turned back to Whiscash, paused a moment, ruffled his tailfeathers, and turned around to look at Absol again.

"Absol! A pleasure to meet you, my dear. You know, you're just as beautiful as your mother. Charizard, you could have mentioned which Absol had come to visit us."

The others laughed; after a moment's hesitation, Absol did too.

One of Whiscash's long barbels lifted out of the water, motioning her forward, and Absol walked to the edge, leaning over to sniff Whiscash. The barbel curled around to stroke the top of her head.

"Don't worry about Xatu. After a hundred years staring at the sun, it's a wonder he can see anything at all."

Delphox came next, a treasure bag slung over her shoulder, and a pencil and notepad in her hand. She stopped to chat with Team Easy at the back of the group. Tyranitar and Alakazam arrived a few minutes later, both looking worn out. Absol wondered what they had been doing all day.

Absol felt Charizard's hand on her shoulder and looked up.

"You ready?" He asked quietly.

Absol nodded. Charizard cleared his throat. Conversations faded away as the others turned to them. Absol hesitated, uncomfortable with being the center of attention

"Thanks for coming, everyone," Charizard said, "Absol has news for us from Mount Freeze."

Charizard stepped away. It was only a pace or two; the dragon could have reached out and touched her with his tail, but Absol suddenly felt very alone.

She began slowly, pulling the blanket tightly around herself with her forelegs as she spoke, leaving only her head exposed. She began with Ninetales' part of the story rather than her own; it felt safer, less personal. The others listened seriously, even Pink, and Absol's confidence grew. She related her dream; the sudden storm in the meadow, her flight up Mount Freeze, being trapped in the cave with Mother. As she talked, the feeling of cold which had receded that morning crept down again from her horn. She began to shiver as she described her journey to Pokémon Square and the feeling of being watched by something malicious from that horrible black void which had pursued her. By the time she finished, her teeth were chattering again, and her legs felt weak.

"Darkrai." Tyranitar growled immediately when she had finished, his voice a low rumble.

"This does sound similar to the Time Gears crisis," Alakazam agreed, "but Team Poképals claimed Darkrai no longer had any evil intent, after his memory was erased."

"It's his nature," Tyranitar said, "Cut off Slowpoke's tail, and it grows back."

"We must consider the possibility," Alakazam said, "unfortunately, I've heard no news of Darkrai since then. We could waste a great deal of time searching for him."

"I'm more concerned about Ninetales' observation of the stars," Xatu said, "events in the Heavens affect events in the World, not the other way around. If both are affected, we should look for a cause there, not here."

"The theft of the Time Gears affected the Heavens," Alakazam objected.

"Exactly my point. The Time Gears affected the Heavens because they contain, or channel, a portion of the Lord of Time's power."

"So you think Dialga is involved."

"It sounds as if Ninetales suspected the First One or his children are involved." Xatu looked to Absol for confirmation, and she nodded. "And he was watching the stars long before any of us hatched."

Whiscash blew a short burst of bubbles, and the others turned to him. "Xatu, have you seen anything that might help us?"

"I have not," Xatu said, "but I stare at the sun, and Ninetales at the stars; it is not surprising that the stars know more of darkness and cold."

"What about you, Whiscash?" Charizard asked, "Can you remember any stories?"

Whiscash chuckled. "I remember a great many stories, but which are relevant? I will let this matter digest tonight, and maybe in the morning I will know."

The conversation continued, but Absol wasn't paying much attention. The sun had set, and the sky was beginning to darken. The terror crept slowly back into her mind, following the cold. She needed to get under cover. What could she say to excuse herself? It was her vision they were all discussing, after all, she couldn't just run off. She felt Charizard's hand on her shoulder again.

"They could be talking for hours," Charizard told her, "but they're not likely to decide anything else tonight. Would you like to go back to the manor?"

"Yes, th-thank you."

On the way back, Charizard led her on a trail which circled around town partway up the hill. It wasn't very late yet; Absol could still see plenty of Pokémon about in the town below as they made their way back to the manor, and she glad to avoid them.

Absol felt instantly relieved as the door swung shut behind them. Charizard took an Orb set on a chain from a hook on the wall and rubbed it until it glowed brightly. The extra light wasn't necessary; between the faint glow of moonlight through the windows and the flame on his tail, they could see well enough; but Absol appreciated it. She noticed, now, that the inside of the door, and the walls to either side, had heavy brackets which could have held a thick beam to secure the door closed.

"They say that this was the original site of Pokémon Square, hundreds of years ago" Charizard explained, following her gaze, "and they built the manor and the wall to defend against bandits. We've never had a need to bar the door, ourselves."

"We have a few spare rooms here," Charizard said, leading her toward one of the unused bedrooms she had seen earlier, "You can use one while you're here. Is there anything else you need?"

"Is th-there any way I c-can send a mes-sage t-to Moth-ther and Ninet-tales?" Absol asked, "Als-so, c-could I bor-row anoth-ther b-blanket?"

"I'll find you another blanket," Charizard said, "but, actually, maybe we should put you in the library tonight. Not much privacy; Pokémon from town visit at all hours, but I'll fire up the stove to keep you warm. You can send a message at the Pelipper Post Office; I'll show you in the morning."

Charizard helped her drag several cushions in front of the stove to make a bed, and departed. Absol pulled her blanket off over her head without untying it, and let it settle on top of her. Charizard returned a few minutes later with another blanket and an armload of firewood, and soon had a cheerful blaze burning in the stove.

"I'll leave this with you," Charizard told her, setting the Luminous Orb by her bed, "I'll be in the first room on the right, upstairs, if you need anything. We're all pretty territorial, so just knock on my door and try not to wake the others."

"Th-thank you so m-much," Absol said, "I w-was so w-worried that n-no one would believe me…"

Charizard smiled. "Absol, without your mother and Ninetales' help in the Meteor incident, I don't know if any of us would be alive, now…and you know your mother helped rescue all three of us in Magma Cavern. She's a hero here, just like the rest of Team Go-Getters. Once word gets out who you are and why you're here, everyone is going to want to hear your story."

Absol pulled her head back under the blanket as if to hide, and Charizard laughed as he turned to leave. Unattended, the Luminous Orb faded out, and she lay there for a while, enjoying the warmth of the stove and the orange glow that shown out through the door. The chill receded; it wasn't gone, she could still feel it in her horn, but it was tolerable, now. Charizard was so friendly, she thought. Alakazam and Xatu and Whiscash were old and wise, like Mother and Ninetales. Other people in Pokémon Square would help too, and they would solve the problem, whatever it was. She didn't have to feel scared and alone, now.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Absol woke to voices and footsteps entering the library. The blanket covered her face, but enough light filtered through that she was sure it must be morning. She didn't want to get up, yet, but she knew she should. People would be looking for her. There would be work to do today. Absol uncurled herself, stretching her forelegs out in front of her, and, yawning, slid out of the blanket. She found herself face-to-face with Pink.

"Morning!" Pink exclaimed, her fluffy tail twitching in excitement, "I wanted to pounce on you but Grey said I mustn't."

Absol wasn't sure how to respond to that, so she settled for a smile and "Good morning."

Pink sat down, scratched herself, and looked around the library as if searching for something. Eventually her gaze returned to Absol.

"Also, I'm supposed to invite you to breakfast. Everyone's waiting outside."

"Thanks."

Absol wriggled her blanket back around her neck, deciding to leave the cushions where they were for now, and followed Pink out to the courtyard. Looking around, Absol saw that everyone from last night was already present, save Whiscash. Alakazam watched her with a frown, and she wondered whether she'd done something to upset him. Tyranitar, picking berries from one of the bushes into a large basket, paused to wave. Grey was inscrutable. Xatu looked up from pecking at a pastry to wink at her. Charizard smiled, waving her to join them. Delphox, still holding her notebook, gave her a nod.

Tyranitar placed the basketful of berries on a stone bench next to the stream, beside a plate of pastries which Absol assumed Xatu must have brought. There was some small talk as they all ate, but Absol said little. Eventually, finished with breakfast, Alakazam led them all back into the library.

"We haven't heard back from Whiscash yet," Charizard said, "but the rest of us have a few tentative plans."

"Unfortunately," Alakazam said, "we don't have much here to go on. First, we need to contact Ninetales and see if he has learned anything further since you left. As I don't know any Psychics at Mount Freeze, we will have to send a message by Pelipper."

"If you'd like, I can help you write a letter to Ninetales and your mother," Charizard offered, "and I'll show you the Post Office, also.

"Thank you. I wanted to let them know I made it here, too."

"Second, I was able to contact Chimecho at Wigglytuff Guild last night. I've briefed him on the situation. Team Poképals have dealt with both Palkia and Dialga in the past; perhaps they'll have some ideas how to proceed. Third, as Tyranitar suggested, Darkrai is a prime suspect. His whereabouts are unknown, but Delphox thinks the Explorers Federation may be able to help us track him down."

"Absol," Delphox said, "with your permission, I'd like to send a summary of your story to the Federation to redistribute. The more Pokémon we can get involved, the greater the chances someone will put the right clues together. We'll put out word that we're looking for Darkrai, as well."

"Of course."

"Additionally, the Federation gets all kinds of reports and requests for aid from Exploration Teams, Guilds, and towns. Most of them don't receive much attention; there isn't the manpower to respond unless it's an emergency. I have dozens, here, and I'm going to request copies from all the other local chapters. It's a long shot, but I'd like you to look through them with me. Maybe we'll find something which stands out to you. You're staying here with Team ACT?"

"Yes." Absol nodded.

"I'll bring what I have over this afternoon. If Team ACT don't mind, we may as well make the manor our headquarters."

Everyone looked to Alakazam, who nodded his wizened head in agreement.

"Absol," Charizard said, "I know you don't want to repeat your story, but a lot of people are going to want to hear it. It might be better to call a meeting this evening where you can tell everyone at once, than to have them wandering in one at a time to ask you."

"I…don't know if I can," Absol said. Telling the seven of them last night had been hard enough; the idea of doing it again in front of the whole town was terrifying.

"Let's go ahead and call the meeting," Charizard said, "We'll do it in the courtyard here, say, two hours before sunset. If you're not up to explaining it all again, Alakazam and I will, and you can answer questions afterward, okay?"

Absol nodded in agreement. The others talked a while longer, but there seemed no further progress to be made. Afterward, Charizard led her to a table cluttered with books, paper, and writing instruments.

Absol hesitated. "I've never written a letter before," she admitted, "I'm not sure what to say."

"Pretend that you're talking to your mother, or to Ninetales," Charizard suggested, "tell her what's happened; not everything, just the important bits."

Absol talked, and Charizard wrote. It was harder than she'd expected, trying to talk to someone who wasn't there. What was important? They didn't need to know how scared and cold she'd been on the way; they needed to know what was happening, now. Absol kept changing her mind, and by the time they were done the first letter was a mess, so Charizard patiently wrote it all again for her.

Mother,

I made it to Pokémon Square. Team Go-Getters isn't here any more, but I found Team ACT. I told them everything, and Whiscash and Xatu and Delphox, too. No one here knows what it means either, but Alakazam is already thinking of plans. Team Poképals from Treasure Town is going to try to talk to Dialga and Palkia. Tyranitar thinks maybe it's Darkrai again. Whiscash is trying to remember stories. Charizard is helping me write this letter. He's really nice. It's exciting to meet all the people you've told me about. There are so many Pokémon here! Charizard says you're a hero. We're sending some paper and pencils and Poké, too, so hopefully you can write back. Charizard says the Pelippers will bring this to you in two or three days, and they will bring letters back here, too. Have you and Ninetales learned anything else? I miss you both. I hope everything is okay on Mount Freeze. I'm not sure what else to say, so goodbye for now.

"I think that's good," Absol said.

Charizard folded the letter neatly. He wrapped the letter, two pencils, a few blank sheets of paper, and some Poké in a cloth, and tied the bundle closed.

"Alright, let's go mail this. I'll show you how it works."

Mother had mentioned the Pelippers before, Absol remembered, but she'd never given it much thought. In front of the Post Office, several groups of Pokémon stood around a large wooden display covered in dozens of pieces of paper. They waved as she and Charizard approached; Charizard waved back, but Absol felt as if they were all staring at her, instead. She smiled back, uncertainly.

"What's that?" Absol asked.

"Public message board," Charizard said, "Delphox posts rescue requests from the Federation badge network, and the Pelippers post news from other towns. Other Pokémon post jobs, too; everything from exploring mystery dungeons to helping harvest berries or enchant scarves. Delphox will probably post your story up there, too."

"Can we look?"

"Lets get this mailed, then why don't you take a few hours and explore Pokémon Square? I need to get back to the manor, and this could be your only chance to see the town without everyone stopping you with questions."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Absol made her first stop at Aromatisse's home, a small, roundish building at the edge of town. It was shaped like two hemispheres stacked one on top of the other, the lower about six meters in diameter, and the upper about four. Two large branches projected from the roof, draped with brightly colored rags. Painted in a garish pink and purple, she though it looked more like a Payapa Berry than Aromatisse. A small, chaotic garden surrounded the house, packed with dozens of kinds of herbs and flowers.

Aromatisse appeared around the side of the building, a bundle of sticks in her arms.

"Oh!" Aromatisse exclaimed, "hello again, dear. Feeling better today? Did Team ACT take are of things for you?"

"Much better," Absol said, "thank you so much. And, well, we're working on it, I guess."

"Want to sit down and tell me about it?" Aromatisse asked, sounding hopeful, "I'll put on some tea."

Reflexively, Absol began to decline, but then she changed her mind. The situation didn't seem so overwhelming, now that they had the beginnings of a plan, and telling her story to Aromatisse now would be good practice for tonight. Also, she wouldn't mind some more of that tea.

"Sure."

Aromatisse led her inside, setting the sticks beside the stove. In contrast to the defensibility of Team ACT's manor, the cottage didn't even have a door, just a heavy curtain. The walls, which arched seamlessly into a roof overhead, were wattle and daub, supported by heavy wooden posts and beams. Windows in the upper section faced in all directions, so that the single room would be well illuminated at any time of day.

Absol repeated her story entirely, beginning with life on Mount Freeze, and continuing with her dream, Ninetales' astrology, her journey to Pokémon Square, and her discussions with Team ACT and the others. By the time she finished, Aromatisse was pouring tea for both of them from a steaming kettle.

Aromatisse reciprocated with gossip and stories about life in Pokémon Square. Though she had not lived there long enough to have met Absol's mother, she seemed to know something about everyone. They talked through a pot of tea and a plate of poffins, and by the time Absol noticed the changing angle of the sun in the windows above, more than two hours had gone by.

"It's been wonderful talking with you," Absol said, "but I should get back to the manor and see if Delphox is there. I don't want to keep everyone waiting."

"I'm so happy you stopped by to chat, dear," Aromatisse said, "be sure to visit again."

"I will." Absol turned to leave, then remembered one more thing she'd meant to ask. "May I keep the blanket a bit longer?"

"As long as you like; I have a whole stack of them."

Absol had intended to explore the rest of the town, but she'd been at Aromatisse's house much longer than she'd planned. It was almost lunchtime, now, and she hoped she hadn't kept Delphox waiting. Better go straight back to the manor, she thought. It sounded like she was going to be in Pokémon Square for a while, and there would be plenty of time to explore later.

When Absol returned to the library, Charizard was the only one there. He sat at one of the tables, a pair of books spread open in front of him and an open pot of ink beside him. He glanced between the left and right books, writing into the right book a few words at a time. Not wanting to startle him while he was writing, Absol waited in the doorway until he went to refill the quill.

"You're writing a book?" She asked.

Charizard nodded, not raising his head to look at her. "Well, copying one."

"Copying?" Absol stood up with her forepaws on the table to see.

"Oh, yes. Many of the books here aren't the originals. We borrow books, or find books that are too old or damaged to read repeatedly, and make our own copies. Sometimes we find books in other languages, too. Alakazam translates them, if he can, and we keep the translation and the original side-by-side"

"Doesn't that take an awfully long time?"

"Months," Charizard said, "Years, sometimes, depending on how long and complex they are. The others don't really have the patience for it, but…" Charizard shrugged, "I love books. I find it relaxing, like Alakazam's meditation or Tyranitar's gardening."

"I didn't miss Delphox, did I?"

"She came by a bit ago with some of those reports." Charizard motioned toward another table with his tail. "You can get started, if you want. She'll probably be back this afternoon once the Pelippers are all in."

Absol carried the stack of papers to her bed in front of the stove, and lay down to read. There were bandit attacks and missing Pokémon, deaths and hatchings and local holidays, a variety of minor crimes, and soon she understood what Delphox had meant by not giving most of them much attention. There were thirty or forty reports in the stack; she read through them all once, and then again, but there was nothing which seemed relevant to their current situation.

One report from someplace called Meadow Town caught her eye; unidentified ice-types had been seen sneaking into the village at night, and had chased several local Pokémon. Hexagonal crystalline Pokémon a bit over a meter high, with chains of ice from their mouths. Searching through several of Team ACT's books, Absol identified them as Cryogonals; it seemed like useless information, though. There was no indication in the report of what they had been looking for. No one had been hurt, or spoken with the trespassers. That was - she checked the date on the letter - over a week ago, now. If anything had come of it, there would have been another report by now, wouldn't there? She would have to ask Delphox about that later; right now, Absol though, she needed a stretch and some fresh air.